New York Archdiocese agrees $800m settlement with abuse survivors

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 24 Oct, 22:56 · Archive

The Archdiocese of New York has agreed to pay more than $800 million to settle claims from 1,300 people who said they were sexually abused by clergy members and lay leaders.

The Archdiocese of New York has agreed to pay more than $800 million to settle sexual abuse claims from 1,300 people who said they were victimized by clergy members and lay leaders in the Roman Catholic Church. Each plaintiff will receive a lump-sum payment of at least $250,000, with potentially larger sums available after review of individual cases. The settlement must be signed by all parties—the plaintiffs, their lawyers and the archdiocese—before it becomes final.

Archbishop Ronald A. Hicks told the New York Times the deal aims to 'bring some measure of healing and reconciliation to all victim-survivors'. Lawyers warned plaintiffs that rejecting the settlement could result in the archdiocese claiming bankruptcy, which would likely lead to a much smaller settlement and additional years of litigation. For those unwilling to accept, the archdiocese negotiated with an insurer to increase funds for holdouts to $20 million, to be split evenly among them.

The settlement resolves a long legal fight. In 2019, New York passed the Child Victims Act, which allowed sexual abuse survivors to bring civil lawsuits against abusers. Thousands subsequently filed claims against the archdiocese, the Boy Scouts and others. The archdiocese, which covers Manhattan, the Bronx, Staten Island and parts of the Hudson Valley, sold assets and cut costs to raise funds. Paul Mones, a lawyer representing 33 plaintiffs, said 'survivors showed an amazing amount of perseverance and patience' in reaching this point.

How it is being reported

• Archdiocese of New York agrees to $800 million settlement over sexual abuse claimsThe 1,300 survivors of sexual abuse by clergy members and lay workers have all agreed to the settlement, according to an attorney for some of the plaintiffs.NPR · 24 Oct, 23:47
• New York archdiocese finalizing $800m settlement with clergy sex abuse survivorsAgreement with more than 1,300 victims of clergy members and lay leaders would resolve long legal fight The Catholic archdiocese of New York is finalizing a settlement for at least $800m with more than 1,300 people who said they were sexually abused by clergy members and lay leaders, according to one of the plaintiff’s attorneys. The agreement would resolve a long legal fight, as well as reportedly reduce the risk of the diocese going bankrupt. Continue reading...The Guardian · 24 Oct, 22:33
• New York Archdiocese agrees to $800M payout to settle nearly 1,300 sex abuse claimsLump-sum payments will be rewarded to people victimized by clergy members and other people in positions of leadership in the Roman Catholic Church.New York Post · 24 Oct, 21:28

In this story: Archdiocese of New York · Ronald A. Hicks · Paul Mones · Manhattan · Bronx · Staten Island · Hudson Valley · New York

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